Often times you will hear people say “you have to love yourself before you can love anyone else” and they are absolutely right ! I remember my mom saying that to me as a teenager, but I never quite understood. It wasn’t until I was about 21 when I finally understood what she had been saying all these years.
Self love is such a necessity when it comes to friendships and relationships. When you love yourself you know your worth, value your time, and protect your peace at all costs. When you don’t love yourself, you are easier to be targeted and taken advantage of.
Take some time for yourself
Learning to love yourself means learning what you like/dislike , getting in touch with your inner self, acknowledging and embracing your flaws and finding out what makes you happy ! During this time you should be doing different things, trying new foods, reading new books and researching random topics you’re interested in. One of the biggest things I learned on this journey to self love is what I really enjoy doing. A few years ago I would’ve never thought I’d be a cosmetology school graduate, doing makeup professionally, and you definitely couldn’t tell me I’d have a blog lol. I’m not the same person I was a few years ago and although I’m still a work in progress, I’ve come a long way ! Before this journey, I felt really discouraged and small. I had been in a very emotionally abusive relationship that tore me to shreds. My self esteem hadn’t been up to par prior to the relationship so you can imagine the mindset I was in. Nothing I did felt good enough, I didn’t feel pretty, I felt worthless and dumb. The great thing about that relationship is, it taught me so much and I’m such a better woman now because of it. If it wasn’t for my self esteem being stripped of me completely I wouldn’t of even got serious about my creative side. I started to do things I had no idea I was capable of. I became more outgoing/social, more in tune with my artistic abilities and driven about my entrepreneurship.
Start Healthy Habits
Another thing I noticed while on my self love journey is I started to care more about my health. Drink more water ! Exercise ! Even if you don’t really like exercising, take a walk and reflect on your day. Start a consistent skincare/ hair routine ! These are all things that helped me not only pass time instead of overthinking and being negative about my past trauma but it made me feel good. I even started meal prepping with my mom at one point ( meal prep is not for the weak ! lol ) Another important thing you can do is write out your goals and make a vision board. When you write out your goals, you are manifesting them and speaking them into existence. Grab a poster board from the dollar store, some magazines, colorful markers, sticker letters and some glitter and have at it ! It’s not only fun and creative but it’s an actual representation of what you want to accomplish in life.
Positive Affirmation
Last but not least, make sure you are being kind to yourself. We all have flaws, nobody is perfect. You should know that you’re a beautiful person inside and out regardless of what anyone else has to say. When you wake up in the morning, say a few things you are grateful for then follow up with something positive to start your day. If you tell yourself you’re going to have a good day you will. Speaking things into existence is real and your attitude is what determines what type of day you’re going to have. Buy sticky notes and write positive things on them then stick them on to your mirror. Everyday when you look in the mirror you will be reminded of those things ! Life is what you make it and self love comes with time. Focus on yourself. Don’t rush into relationships without knowing who you are first. Be patient and good things will come to you !
